Projector Headlight Fog

[Hydrasport23]

I tried adjusting the headlights the other day and noticed how much less light the fogged up left headlight was putting out when compared the the right headlight. I removed the headlight and used a vacuum cleaner to pull a vacuum on the headlight housing to remove all the moisture from my left projector headlight assembly. That worked well and I even added a large desiccant bag inside the headlight assembly. The one way vents are open and I adjusted the vent covers so they are not completely shut off. The moisture is back today and it really dims the light coming from that headlight. Swapped bulbs and even bought new bulbs but the moisture on the lens is definitely reducing the amount of light. Has anyone had success clearing the headlight of moisture and keeping it from returning? The seems do not appear to be in bad shape but the moisture is coming from somewhere. The right side was giving moisture problems a year ago, but once I cleared the fog out of the lens, I've had no more problems.
Any one buy new headlight assemblies to correct the issue and if so, what brand?

 

[1SloRam]

I tried adjusting the headlights the other day and noticed how much less light the fogged up left headlight was putting out when compared the the right headlight. I removed the headlight and used a vacuum cleaner to pull a vacuum on the headlight housing to remove all the moisture from my left projector headlight assembly. That worked well and I even added a large desiccant bag inside the headlight assembly. The one way vents are open and I adjusted the vent covers so they are not completely shut off. The moisture is back today and it really dims the light coming from that headlight. Swapped bulbs and even bought new bulbs but the moisture on the lens is definitely reducing the amount of light. Has anyone had success clearing the headlight of moisture and keeping it from returning? The seems do not appear to be in bad shape but the moisture is coming from somewhere. The right side was giving moisture problems a year ago, but once I cleared the fog out of the lens, I've had no more problems.
Any one buy new headlight assemblies to correct the issue and if so, what brand?

I’ve yet to have a vehicle that didn’t have condensation get into the light housings.
Some worse than others.
My Charger and 4Runner were the worst.
I’ve ran OEM, eBay, Amazon, and a custom set. All would fog at some time or another.

 

[Bigskyroadglide]

Are you running led or hid bulbs? If so, there is a potential answer.

The lower amount of heat generated by led or hid bulbs will allow moisture to form inside the housings in certain climates.

I noticed on my 14. my projector housings would generate fog inside the housings when I'm in Montana during the cooler months but go away when I was in Virginia during the same time of year. I'm running hid bulbs.

If I switch back to factory bulbs, the additional heat would clear up the moisture.

I kinda solved the problem by using hids in the low beams and standard bulbs in the high beams and running the high beams longer or more often if I'm in a cooler climate. This solved my fogging issue but may not be optimal.

My experience. Yours could be different.

 

[indept]

I had the same problem with my quad headlights. I removed the headlight assemblies, warmed them with a hair dryer for a while to dry them, then sealed all seams with silicone caulk. That was 5 years ago and no problem since.

 

[caulk04]

My headlight fog issue stopped immediately after I hung a thin sheet of plastic between the headlight and fender liner. Road spray was really blasting at the vents and working it's way in there

 

[Hydrasport23]

Are you running led or hid bulbs? If so, there is a potential answer.

The lower amount of heat generated by led or hid bulbs will allow moisture to form inside the housings in certain climates.

I noticed on my 14. my projector housings would generate fog inside the housings when I'm in Montana during the cooler months but go away when I was in Virginia during the same time of year. I'm running hid bulbs.

If I switch back to factory bulbs, the additional heat would clear up the moisture.

I kinda solved the problem by using hids in the low beams and standard bulbs in the high beams and running the high beams longer or more often if I'm in a cooler climate. This solved my fogging issue but may not be optimal.

My experience. Yours could be different.

I had the OEM bulbs in the lights and then swapped to LED's. Both bulbs allowed fog to form in the right headlight assembly. Only the right assembly is fogging up and I have the same bulb in both the right and left assembly so it's not likely related to the bulb.

 

[Hydrasport23]

I had the same problem with my quad headlights. I removed the headlight assemblies, warmed them with a hair dryer for a while to dry them, then sealed all seams with silicone caulk. That was 5 years ago and no problem since.

I think I might try this. Just not sure how to set the vents. The One-way screens on the vents are no longer all there, but the caps are still installed. Should I seal the vents completely?

 

[indept]

I think I might try this. Just not sure how to set the vents. The One-way screens on the vents are no longer all there, but the caps are still installed. Should I seal the vents completely?

I didn't touch the vents, just sealed the seams where wind driven rain can seep in.

 

[hunterdan]

I think I might try this. Just not sure how to set the vents. The One-way screens on the vents are no longer all there, but the caps are still installed. Should I seal the vents completely?

Housings need to be able to breathe. Are the caps for the vents pressed all the way on? They only need to be pushed part of the way. Instead of using a vacuum, use a hair dryer. The hair dryer will actually evaporate any water in there. Just using a vacuum without sealing it up will not get rid of the moisture. Bulbs can make a difference. If you are using led bulbs, they take a much longer time to evaporate any condensation that gets in. Hids get pretty warm and aren't a problem. You can run hid low and led high and not have issues with moisture. Sealing them up 100% is a terrible idea. Any humidity that is inside will remain inside. I've heard of people installing goretex patches on the dust covers after drilling a good sized hole to allow air in and out, but the goretex stops water from going in.
-First steps, dry the housing out again with a hair dryer or heat gun on low. Hair dryer is preferred since it doesn't run the risk of melting anything.
-Remove the desiccant packet and toss it.
-Pull the vents, ensure they're all clear (cap and vent hole) and reinstall them, but make sure not to press them on all the way.
-Toss in another desiccant packet or 2 (optional)
-Reinstall bulb cover completely, make sure gasket around the cover is intact.
-Check for condensation again in a few days.

If you continue to get moisture in the housings, make sure nobody drilled a drain hole in the lens anywhere or in the housing itself.

 

[joelmic]

I have kind of the same problem but I'm not sure it's actual fog? I thought it was the headlight discoloring from the inside?? I need to change my High beams to LED anyway, I guess I'll try the heat gun or blower or whatever...

 

[02Steve15]

I've had some condensation in my passenger side headlight for a while. I took the headlight out and backed off the three filters as they were all the way on. I guess we'll see if that helps resolve the issue. If not I'll try to run a hairdryer on the inside and use some silicone on the edges later on. I talked to the dealer and they said they pretty much just tell people to get a new headlight assembly for $1000-$1300 lol. I have halogen bulbs with projector housing and LED turn signals for my headlights. The condensation isn't a puddle of water but just droplets on the bottom portion of the light.

 

[mdc1990zr1]

I've had some condensation in my passenger side headlight for a while. I took the headlight out and backed off the three filters as they were all the way on. I guess we'll see if that helps resolve the issue. If not I'll try to run a hairdryer on the inside and use some silicone on the edges later on. I talked to the dealer and they said they pretty much just tell people to get a new headlight assembly for $1000-$1300 lol. I have halogen bulbs with projector housing and LED turn signals for my headlights. The condensation isn't a puddle of water but just droplets on the bottom portion of the light.

I haven't had this issue on my Ram or my Jeep but did have this issue on various Chevys and GMCs. Like some previous posts, I ran a bead of sealer, either some kind of silicone caulk or the clear silicone to seal windshields and this cured all my condensation issues.

 

[02Steve15]

I haven't had this issue on my Ram or my Jeep but did have this issue on various Chevys and GMCs. Like some previous posts, I ran a bead of sealer, either some kind of silicone caulk or the clear silicone to seal windshields and this cured all my condensation issues.

Alright thanks, that's probably what I'm going to have to do. I noticed it actually seems to have gotten a little worse. The halogen headlight bulb burns some of it off when it's on, but it's still there. If I catch a nice day and I've got some time, I'll try running some caulk where the clear plastic meets the black plastic on top of the headlight housing and see if that works. I'll use a hair dryer to dry up the condensation in the housing first.

I noticed the driver's side has some light condensation on the bottom now too.

 

[Cableman]

Alright thanks, that's probably what I'm going to have to do. I noticed it actually seems to have gotten a little worse. The halogen headlight bulb burns some of it off when it's on, but it's still there. If I catch a nice day and I've got some time, I'll try running some caulk where the clear plastic meets the black plastic on top of the headlight housing and see if that works. I'll use a hair dryer to dry up the condensation in the housing first.

I noticed the driver's side has some light condensation on the bottom now too.

Flowable silicone is prolly better, i used this on my last rams leaking rear window and it sealed it up
Permatex 81730 Flowable Silicone Windshield and Glass Sealer, 1.5 oz. https://a.co/d/9Hf5Qjl

 

[02Steve15]

Flowable silicone is prolly better, i used this on my last rams leaking rear window and it sealed it up
Permatex 81730 Flowable Silicone Windshield and Glass Sealer, 1.5 oz. https://a.co/d/9Hf5Qjl

Ok thanks I will look into this as well. Appreciate the help!